Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
There is another topic I would like to get back to. In the 2019 and 2020 throne speeches, there was talk of a national universal drug insurance program. The purpose was to ensure that all Canadians had access to drugs. For me, Ginette Petitpas Taylor, member for the riding of Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe, it's a priority. It's also a priority for our government.
Through a rare-disease strategy to help Canadian families save money on high-cost drugs, we want to continue to develop a national plan to ensure that all Canadians have access to a national pharmacare plan. I was happy to see that it was in the 2019 throne speech as well as the 2020 throne speech. Ms. Freeland could talk about this if we were to invite her to join us.
As for establishing a national system designed to keep drug prices low, this would be part of developing a national pharmacare plan. To develop a national plan, close collaboration with the provinces and territories will be required. We need to set it in motion soon if we want to actually get it done. As far as I'm concerned, it's an absolute priority.
In addition to sound health infrastructures, Canadians need strong, safe communities to call home. That's why the government has banned assault-style firearms. The government will also continue implementing firearms policy commitments, including by giving municipalities the ability to further restrict or ban handguns, and strengthening measures to control the flow of illegal guns into Canada.
Women’s safety must be the foundation on which all progress is built. The government will accelerate investments in shelters and transition housing, and continue to advance with a national action plan on gender-based violence. We have all seen the recently published statistics. Over the past year, the rates of spousal and family violence have risen enormously.
As I have already mentioned to the committee members, I was a social worker at the RCMP before entering politics. Many of my clients were women victims of spousal violence and sexual abuse. Every year in Moncton, I had to write a death notice for at least one if not two women who had been a victim of spousal violence. Going to meet family members to tell them that their relative had been stabbed or shot was very difficult. When I hear that our statistics are still increasing during the pandemic, I tell myself that we have to do better. We have to protect women and doing so requires the necessary investments.
I'm happy about the investments made over the past year. The number of cases has been increasing. The pandemic is not a cause, but it's nevertheless clear that more women have been victims of violence. The sexual assault rate has also increased. As a government, we have to continue to ensure that shelters, transition housing and second-stage housing receive the funding they need. I know that I'm speaking on behalf of all my colleagues. We all want to do whatever we can to protect women and put an end to a really serious situationx.
In Canada, one woman dies every six days because of spousal violence. That's one woman every six days, and the numbers are still rising. We can and must do better.
I know that Ms. Vecchio has been a member of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. The pandemic has made it clear that women and children are more vulnerable. If Minister Freeland were to meet with us, we could ask some questions and emphasize the importance of ensuring that the investments are made. We need to invest more.
To continue to build communities…